Home to university powerhouses
Beyond their established positions as leading UK cities, Manchester and Birmingham share a common foundation, in that both are university powerhouses. Both home to multiple world-renowned institutions, including elite Russell Group Universities, this top student population contributes to a stable property market, long-term rental demand and strong capital growth.
A constant stream of tenants
Unlike other tenant groups, the student population is a constant demographic that grows each year. With a cycle of new intake, a reliable pipeline of tenants is consistently created.
- 80,000 new students a year in Birmingham
- 150,000 new students a year in Manchester
- Beyond the classroom, the UK offers a diverse multi-cultural neighbourhood, with students travelling from over 150 countries to study in these UK university cities.
- This encourages students to develop communities and a global network, encouraging them to remain in the city post-graduation.
Top talent that drives demand
As top UK university cities, both Manchester and Birmingham have thriving job markets, offering an abundance of opportunities to post-graduates and young professionals. These graduates that remain fuel a vibrant local economy that attracts more young professionals from other university cities. This not only drives rental demand, but also increases capital values for all properties in the city centre.
- Both Manchester and Birmingham boast circa 50% graduate retention rates, with thousands of graduates each year seeking new city centre accommodation.
- Manchester is home to 80% of the FTSE 100 companies, attracting a host of young professionals.
- Birmingham boasts major employers, including PwC, Deloitte, EY, HSBC, Goldman Sachs.
- As their careers evolve, tenants’ demands also increase, contributing to the surge in demand for luxury accommodation in the city centre.
Strong yields and predictable growth
The student market in university cities drives strong rental yields, through high demand and limited supply of purpose-built accommodation.
- New build apartments in Manchester and Birmingham have seen a surge in demand, with rental prices increasing by circa 50% over the past five years (JLL).
- Rental growth is predicted to grow a further 18.8% in Manchester and Birmingham over the next five years (JLL)
- The growth for apartments in Manchester and Birmingham city centres is driven largely by young professionals and graduates, who have studied in prominent university cities. This consistent current of tenants ensures that city centre accommodation is more resilient to economic fluctuations, particularly apartments.
A legacy for your family
With the consistent rental returns and strong capital growth potential, many international families are now investing in UK property located in these university cities, for their child studying in the UK to live in. These families then keep the property as an investment post-graduation, renting the property out to future students.
- Property can become a stable asset, that can be passed down to future children, ensuring a legacy that can be transferred for generations.
- More parents are exploring property investment in the UK. You can learn key insights in our recent podcast with education specialist.
UK property investment opportunities
At Select Property, we currently have property opportunities in top university cities including Manchester and Birmingham.
With 21 years experience in the UK property market we hand-pick the highest yielding opportunities and offer these to our global investor community. Our team of consultants are based across the globe, with offices in Manchester, Dubai, Saudi Arabia, Shanghai and Hong Kong. Contact us to learn more about investing in UK property, and our team will be in touch to assist you with your journey.